What Happened on the Titanic?

Ice Fields  

     In 1912 the Titanic was ready to leave dock on its first voyage. Many people thought the Titanic was unsinkable. But Captain Smith failed his passengers and didn't watch out for the ice fields.

Titanic Facts

• There were only 705 survivors of the sinking of the Titanic.

• More than 1,500 people died, including Captain Edward Smith.

• The Titanic was 889 feet 9 inches long. It was the biggest ship in the world when it sank in 1912.

• The temperature of the water was 28 degrees F, which is below freezing. Freezing water causes people to die in just minutes from hypothermia.

• When the crew of the Titanic saw the iceberg, they tried to turn parallel  to the iceberg. The Titanic did not crash into the part of the iceberg that could be seen above the water. 

• Below the water the iceberg scraped the Titanic. It cut open the bow (front) section of the ship. Water flowed into the ship and caused the ship to sink in about two hours.

• The Titanic broke into two parts before sinking to the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean.

Survivor Stories

• Eva Hart was only 7 years old when the Titanic sank. She died in 1996 and was the last survivor who was old enough to remember watching the Titanic sink. Watch the first video below to see Eva Hart's story.

• Another person who survived the Titanic was Violet Jessop. She was a stewardess on the Titanic. Watch in the second video below to see Violet Jessop's story.

• The last living survivor of the Titanic was Millvina Dean. She was wrapped in a sack and lowered into a lifeboat when she was only 2 months old. Millvina Dean lived to be 97 years old and passed away in 2009.